NEW DELHI: Israel has recently declared Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) a terrorist organisation as it was involved in the 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai which also targeted Jews. Israel is hopeful that India will also label Hamas a terror organisation.
"We have provided India with all details on Hamas and it is up to the government to take a call and decide when to label it a terror organisation. Had India done this in the past, Hamas leader Khaled Mashal could have been prevented from addressing a pro-Palestinian rally in Kerala virtually," said Israel’s envoy to India Naor Gilon on Tuesday.
At present, there is a ceasefire to facilitate the exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners. For every Israeli hostage that Hamas releases, they get three prisoners in a swap agreement. Meanwhile, Israel has nearly razed Hamas’s infrastructure in northern Gaza and is gearing up to launch an offensive in southern Gaza. Around 175 Israeli hostages continue to be in Palestine. Some are feared to be held captive by the Palestinian group Islamic Jihad.
"We have destroyed the on-ground infrastructure of Hamas in northern Gaza and nearly two million Palestinians have moved to southern Gaza. We will keep giving a day’s extension to the ceasefire until the hostages are released, following which we will begin our offensive in southern Gaza," said Ambassador Gilon, adding that they fear that most of the hostages are inside the underground tunnels.
Israel is also expecting more Indians to work in their country as caregivers, construction workers and agricultural workers.
"There are nearly 18,000 Indians working in Israel and we have signed two protocols (government to government) for getting workers in agriculture and construction from India," said Ambassador Gilon.
Israel has also expressed unhappiness with the UN’s biased attitude towards them. They say that the UN has been expressing concern over the deaths of civilians including children in Palestine but doesn’t share the same sentiment for Israeli hostages – who were picked up from their houses including women who were raped.
Meanwhile, Israel’s President Isaac Herzog will be making a short trip to the UAE to attend the COP 28 Summit.
"PM Modi too is going to be there for a short duration. If the schedules work, the two leaders could end up meeting on the sidelines of the summit," said Gilon.